Author Comments

Try to become the most successfull merchant by running your own item shop in the world of Tomagar. Trade items with adventurers, craft powerful items and earn a profit from your sales. Challenge and surpass your peers using a variety of covert operations.

Rated 0 / 5 stars2012-11-04 17:58:44

Rated 0 / 5 stars2012-11-04 17:22:09

Various people have referred to this game as a trap, a bait and switch, and that it is both a 'pay to play' and a 'pay to win' game. Over the last day or so, I have been testing out the ability to play the game using no money, and just enjoying the mechanics.

At first, things went well enough. I focused a few areas where I could specialize, and made good money. I upgraded my resource pools substantially, trained my merchants into high proficiency, and allowing me to maintain a healthy supply of sellable goods at all times.

I stayed in the countryside for a long time, making sure that my system was sustainable. I made good money, and had the full free recipe list for both the carpenter and the blacksmith. The game limits how much reputation you can build without progressing into new areas, so I 'missed out' on some by not doing so. However, I wanted to give the mechanics EVERY opportunity to work without money. I saved up my money, and moved into the gate once my shop was a powerhouse, I had merchandise for days, and I had leeway funds to make sure I could support myself if things went a little sour.

Things went a LOT sour. Very few customers. The customers I did receive were only willing to buy things well below average price, almost everyone unwilling to haggle, etc. I turned on one of the market boosters that you receive for achievements. No luck. I started giving craftsmen days off to offset the lack of customers: there is a limit to how many days off you may have.

Slowly, but surely, my savings were shot, I had well trained, but well paid craftsmen, and the rent for working at the gates. When I went broke, I could spend money for 10,000 gold, I could lose everything in a firesale for 500 gold (dozens of items worth several thousand gold, and more), or I could quit the game with the bankruptcy button.

I quit this game, and any notion that its rules are fair for those too poor and boring to play it 'correctly.'

As a side note, the guild system requires you enter yourself into the system, and provides you no way to JOIN guilds. I didn't feel comfortable spamming people, offering them a spot in my guild. Thereafter, no guild, means shop boosts never activate. The 15,000 gold I spent on shop boosts wouldn't have saved me from the inevitability of bankruptcy anyway, it would have just taken longer.

Rated 0 / 5 stars2012-11-04 14:58:16

I have to agree with Joeslash.

A game on greed is a game not worth it indeed.... Newgrounds should have never been a place for allowance of games to take in the hoard of fresh cash. I'll support newgrounds, but not the greedy people. I can't even continue in the game with out asking for tokens.

Rated 0 / 5 stars2012-11-04 14:38:11

This "game" is a trap.

Swords and Potions is a fresh take on the business management genre of games with a great stylistic approach and superb programming. What you may not realize is that it's also one of those Zynga-esque time-wasters, where you're encouraged to pay real money for hard-to-earn virtual upgrades. And even if you hold out to earn your upgrades the hard way, you will eventually be told you've run out of in-game days and have to wait for a period of time before you can continue playing... or continue playing right away for a fee.

Had I first seen this game under MMO & Promoted Games on the front page, I don't think I'd have any right to be angry. I think it's common knowledge that that particular category involves some form of revenue generation. But I first saw this title listed under Featured Games, a listing that I consider to be a talent showcase.

I personally believe content I find on Newgrounds to be labors of love, by a person or a group of people who create for the sake of creating something. Sometimes it's commentary on life or pop culture, and sometimes it's simply for the lulz, but it's typically never for profit. For all it's merits, this game, with it's bait-and-switch tactic, has earned nothing from me but scorn for its intentions and pity for its talented creators.